Did He Drop Loot?

"Dad, what are you doing?"

Lin Qi watched Lin Feng bend over and search Oliver's body, unable to resist trying to stop him.

He had assumed his father wanted to prepare this old acquaintance's body for burial out of regard for their shared hometown. But when he moved closer, his pupils suddenly contracted.

Several faintly glowing cards appeared out of thin air, stacking up in the hand Lin Feng had pressed against Oliver's chest.

"Did he... drop loot?"

Lin Qi's voice changed pitch, tinged with shock and wild delight.

He had only ever seen people drop items when they died in games he had played before transmigrating. He had never imagined that beating a minor boss on the Source Card Continent could make cards drop too!

"Four two-star green cards and a three-star green-quality Skill Card. Looks like Oliver lined his own pockets plenty during his years working for the city lord's residence."

Lin Feng stood up, his tone flat, but Lin Qi detected a hint of coldness in it.

He turned to Lin Qi, his expression grave. "Son, I meant to wait until you were older to tell you about these things. Since you saw this today, it's time you learned the truth about this world. Making a living as a Card Master isn't so easy."

Lin Qi's heart tightened, and he nodded seriously.

He knew that what his unreliable father was about to tell him were the real rules of survival.

Lin Feng gazed at the cooking smoke rising from the distant town, his voice low.

"Everyone in this world takes pride in becoming a Card Master and thinks it's a glamorous life. But in this line of work, you're licking blood off a knife's edge. The people who die every year could be piled into mountains. There are two main reasons for that. The first is taking part in Card Beast hunts."

Card Beasts?

Hearing that, Lin Qi couldn't help being taken aback.

Weren't Card Beasts easy to hunt? Even the hunters in the west of the city caught plenty of them every day. The meat shops in the city had Card Beast meat on their chopping blocks all year round; it was even more common than beef.

As though he could see Lin Qi's confusion, Lin Feng explained, "The Card Beasts in the Black Wind Forest are all low-tier. They're not much stronger than livestock, and any mercenary who's awakened an Implement Card can sweep through the Black Wind Forest."

"Then you're talking about high-tier Card Beasts, Dad?"

Lin Feng nodded, his eyes dimming somewhat. He had clearly experienced these things himself.

"In the Iron Ore Mountain Range outside town, there are plenty of mid-tier and high-tier Card Beasts.

"For Card Apprentices like us, with no background or backer, there's no other way to gather the materials to advance our Natal Cards except to hunt Card Beasts in the Iron Ore Mountain Range."

"Mid-tier Card Beasts are manageable. Most are at the Card Master level, and when the dozen or so of us in the mercenary group stick together, we can always bring something back if we're careful. But when it comes to high-tier Card Beasts..."

At that, his fists suddenly clenched, and his eyes reddened slightly.

"A single high-tier Card Beast can devour an entire mercenary group without leaving a bone."

Lin Qi fell silent too. Could my mother have died because of a high-tier Card Beast?

Father and son were both silent for a while. Lin Feng regained control of his emotions, and his gaze softened as he looked at his son.

"But I'm glad you have a talent for making cards. As long as you can pass the exam to join the Card Maker Association, you can at least avoid making a living licking blood off a knife's edge. Your life will be much more stable."

Lin Qi nodded and nudged Oliver's body with his foot. "Then is the second risk being targeted for a treasure you possess? Someone finds out you've got a good card, and you end up dead with your card taken?"

"That's right, but not entirely."

Lin Feng explained, "Among Card Masters of the same rank, blue cards have an inherent advantage over green cards. It's not that easy for a few people with green cards to rob someone with a blue card.

"And higher-ranked Card Masters usually look down on the junk that lower-ranked Card Masters treasure, so it's rare for Card Masters to kill one another over cards."

Now Lin Qi was puzzled. "Then what makes people kill for cards?"

"It's an industry."

Lin Feng's voice turned cold. "There are quite a few underground organizations on this continent that specialize in killing people for their cards. They even take on 'custom bounty' jobs."

Lin Qi was even more confused. "Custom bounties?"

Lin Feng nodded. "That's right. Custom bounties cater specifically to nobles.

"Most nobles inherit their Natal Cards through their bloodlines, and they're very particular about which Secondary Cards they pair with them.

"Hiring a Card Maker to create the cards they need costs money and uses up favors. Usually, they'd rather post a bounty on the black market or with one of those organizations. After all, there are always Card Masters who have matching cards, and that's given rise to specialized hunting teams.

"Of course, this only happens with Magic Cards and Summoning Cards.

"Take my Implement Card. I always wear it. Even if someone ambushes me, the equipment is bound to be badly damaged first. As long as I don't return it to my Card Space, all an enemy would get by taking it off me is a damaged piece of equipment."

Lin Qi nodded thoughtfully. "I see. So is that also why you didn't use your Skill Card just now?"

He had thought his father was being sentimental, but it turned out he was afraid of exposing Wind-Chasing Triple Slash and attracting trouble.

"That was just one reason. Oliver and I were both Five-Star Card Masters. He couldn't beat me, but to kill him in one strike, I still had to find the right moment.

"More importantly, there were those guards. If even one had escaped, everyone would have heard that I had a blue-quality Skill Card hidden away. In a mercenary group, a treasure like that would have people fighting like mad to get it."

He suddenly grew serious and gripped Lin Qi's shoulder. "Remember, when you run into enemies out there, either don't make a move, or kill them in one strike. Never give them a chance to escape."

"I'll remember."

Lin Qi gave his solemn promise, then changed the subject, his tone growing heavy.

"Dad, to tell you the truth, Lei De is very likely behind this. If you show him mercy again this time, I'm afraid he'll come straight for me next."

This wasn't a guess. It was a conclusion Lin Qi had reached over the years since he transmigrated, using the logic of a modern person. Of course, he was also forcing Lin Feng to make a choice.

"Ever since I was little, no matter what our family did, Lei De always came and sabotaged it. When the shop first opened, business was terrible because of him. If I hadn't paid the city lord's residence for the stall, he might still be causing trouble.

"Last time, when the bandits from Stone Iron Mountain abducted you, I think Lei De was probably the one who tipped them off.

"Now that our family has started selling cards, he knows that once we establish our own foothold in Stone Iron City, he definitely won't get another chance to strike. That's why he's been trying every way he can to cause trouble lately."

Lin Feng's brow furrowed more and more deeply.

Though he wasn't as quick-witted as his son, he was no fool. Once Lin Qi pointed it out, he immediately sensed that something was amiss.

After a long silence, he raised his head, the last trace of hesitation gone from his eyes. "Don't worry, son. I'll go find Lei De and settle this feud once and for all."